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 Post subject: No Engineers.....only Conductors
PostPosted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 10:09 pm 

Joined: Fri Nov 07, 2008 11:21 am
Posts: 473
Trolley Poles and Pantographs are for wusses and sissies. Hard hats required.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unhXEQQk ... r_embedded


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 Post subject: Re: No Engineers.....only Conductors
PostPosted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 11:04 pm 

Joined: Fri Sep 09, 2005 9:04 am
Posts: 151
Location: Argos, Indiana
Why bother with the hard hats? lol ...hopefully this video doesn't give people any ideas... :)

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Bob Barcus, Treasurer
Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum
North Judson, Indiana


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 Post subject: Re: No Engineers.....only Conductors
PostPosted: Thu Sep 10, 2009 12:27 am 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 1:51 pm
Posts: 11481
Location: Somewhere east of Prescott, AZ along the old Santa Fe "Prescott & Eastern"
I tried to pull up my Statistical Abstract to cite the life expectancy in Albania........... but they apparently don't report their data............


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 Post subject: Re: No Engineers.....only Conductors
PostPosted: Thu Sep 10, 2009 12:27 am 

Joined: Tue Dec 14, 2004 5:45 pm
Posts: 292
Holy moses. I've heard of a stinger, but didn't think anybody would use it for their primary current source.

The adapted Flintstones song in the comments section summed it up pretty good:

Albanians, meet the Albanians
They're the modern stone-age family
Digging through the bedrock
They're a page right out of history
Let's ride with the nutters down the track
Through the courtesy of an electric crack
When you're with the Albanians
Have a yow-how-who-hoo time
A buzzing fizz time
You'll have a gay old time

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Andy Nold


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 Post subject: Re: No Engineers.....only Conductors
PostPosted: Thu Sep 10, 2009 3:38 am 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 8:51 pm
Posts: 2041
Location: Southern California
Albania -- I once read a professional reporter's story about visiting the country.

It was a confusing place to visit. They nod their heads up and down to indicated the negative and they shake their heads from side to side to indicate yes or agreement.

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Brian Norden


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 Post subject: Re: No Engineers.....only Conductors
PostPosted: Thu Sep 10, 2009 4:20 pm 

Joined: Sat Aug 28, 2004 3:25 am
Posts: 1025
Ah, the wonders of YouTube! I found a video of a surviving Pacific Electric locomotive in Argentina, and I've also found musical performances from the 60's featuring my favorite singer. Those of us who are partial to the Santa Fe can see 3415 restored to life displayed on our computers. The Albanian video (note that it dates from 1995, so this operation may be history now) certainly shows how basic railroading can be when we get away from standard gauge and FRA jurisdiction. The manual switching of the cars (waggons?) reminded me of a Welsh two-foot operation. One comment mentioned the smiling workers; to me this is a sign of a crew with good teamwork, which can overcome deficiencies in equipment.

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Bob Davis
Southern California


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 Post subject: Re: No Engineers.....only Conductors
PostPosted: Thu Sep 10, 2009 7:49 pm 

Joined: Mon Aug 23, 2004 9:04 am
Posts: 293
Location: Lawrence, Mass.
Brian Norden wrote:
It was a confusing place to visit. They nod their heads up and down to indicated the negative and they shake their heads from side to side to indicate yes or agreement.


That would explain a lot. It probably all began with a conversation between the Albanian engineers and a non-Albanian safety consultant...

"Hey, do you think this is unsafe?"

< nods >

"Cool!"

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Richard Jenkins


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 Post subject: Re: No Engineers.....only Conductors
PostPosted: Thu Sep 10, 2009 9:01 pm 

Joined: Thu Nov 22, 2007 5:46 am
Posts: 2603
Location: S.F. Bay Area
Did you see near the end, where the guy was improvising 'chopper control' by tap-tap-tap'ing the wire?


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 Post subject: Re: No Engineers.....only Conductors
PostPosted: Fri Sep 11, 2009 11:39 am 

Joined: Mon Aug 23, 2004 3:01 pm
Posts: 1730
Location: SouthEast Pennsylvania
Could this be a case of trade embargoes, or the demise of Ohio Brass and other suppliers, making it hard to maintain and replace the original trolley poles?


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 Post subject: Re: No Engineers.....only Conductors
PostPosted: Fri Sep 11, 2009 11:43 am 

Joined: Mon Jan 17, 2005 9:06 pm
Posts: 2530
Location: Thomaston & White Plains
It's more likely a matter of a different mind-set about work hazards....and putting food on the table. And probably a more fatalistic attitude towards "industrial accidents".

Howard P.
Zorch-und-Zap, NY

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"I'm a railroad man, not a prophet."


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